Ana María Cardenas

Colombian social entrepreneur empowering rural women through digital literacy

Ana María Cardenas is a transformative leader behind PuenteWeb, a Colombian NGO that has trained 12,000+ rural women in digital skills since 2018. Her Digital Bridge Program (2021) combines mobile learning with offline kiosks in regions without internet, enabling participants to start e-commerce businesses and access financial services. Cardenas' work was pivotal in Colombia's 2023 Digital Inclusion Act, which earmarked $50M for rural tech infrastructure.

In 2024, she launched Mujeres Conectadas, a network connecting 3,000+ women entrepreneurs across Latin America. Her partnership with Microsoft provided 5,000+ devices to displaced communities affected by Colombia's internal conflict. Cardenas also co-founded the Educación Femenina Digital initiative (2022), which has built 25 tech centers in conflict-affected regions.

Recognized as a Young Champion of the Earth by UNEP in 2020, Cardenas' TEDx talk 'Empowering Women Through Wi-Fi' has been translated into 15 languages. She recently collaborated with the Inter-American Development Bank on a $2M project expanding digital literacy to indigenous communities. Her 2025 memoir Tejiendo Conexiones chronicles her journey building tech equity in Colombia.